Honestly Dauntless
by Undead Specialist
Summary: Catherine Jones was born into the Candor faction, and never really questioned it up until now. She always had the voice in the back of her head telling her that maybe honesty wasn't always the best. When the chance finally arises where she may be able to switch factions, she can't help but feel the urge to leave behind her family and start a new life for herself. Eric/OC R&R!
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note**: Hello, everyone! This is my first Divergent fanfiction, so I help you enjoy it. It will be mixed between the book and the movie. I read the book awhile ago- back in November, so I don't rememeber every single detail. I want to say this right off the bat: Christina, Will, Al and Tris will not be in this fanfiction. My story right now is based on when Tobias (he will be called Tobias until we found out he only has four fears), and Eric become initates. Thanks for picking my fanfiction to read. Please review if you enjoy it!

**Chapter One**

Catherine Jones stood in her bedroom, staring down at the textbook in her hands. No matter how many times she reread the first line, the petite Candor couldn't focus enough to understand what it was saying. After several attempts, she let out an exhasperated sigh and closed the book with a light _thud_. How could she focus on doing homework- when in just two days she was going to be taking the most important test of her life?

She pushed a strand of her long back hair behind her ear, before off herself off of the bed. She crossed her bedroom, eyes staring down at the white tiled floors. Everything was black and white- no matter where she turned. No color, or excitement, or anything even remotely interesting to get Catherine through the painstakingly long forty-eight hours. Just as the teenager stepped out of the door, she ran into her doppelganger.

Elizabeth stood at the end of the hall- an exact replica of Catherine. The twins both had long, black hair that reached the small of their back, large, emerald orbs with specks of brown. Elizabeth clearned her throat, and turned to her sister.

"Leaving?" She eyed Catherine wearily.

"Yes. I can't concentrate. I fightured a walk would do me some good," Catherine shrugged her shoulders.

"You're leaving Candor, aren't you? After the tests are done, you're going to leave us all behind." Her words abrupt and laced with an edge Catherine couldn't place, this wasn't a question, it was a fact.

"What?" Catherine frowned and furrowed her eye brows together. Was her sister really asking this? Elizabeth knew she couldn't lie- but why would she put her on spot with such a thing? After a moment of silence, Catherine shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. I haven't decided yet. If my results say I should stay with Candor I will. If it says otherwise, than I'll be forced to rethink my decision. " Catherine tried to answer with honest, despite the back of her mind telling her to lie.

Elizabeth simply nodded her head and rounded the corner, towards the back of their home. Catherine shook her head and pushed on towards the front door. Was she always so easy to read? Catherine bit down on her lower lip. That was another reason why she couldn't stay with Candor. Despite how many times '_telling the truth is best_' was drilled into her head, she always had a small voice in the back of her mind screaming at her to lie, to save her sorry ass before she got into trouble.

As soon as Catherine stepped outside of her home, she was met with the desolate land around her. The only sign of life was the other houses around her, and in the distance the Merciless Mart grew upward from the ground. The neon red sign flickered pathetically, threatening another letter to go out.

The outsider took a seat on the cement porch, pulling her legs up to her chest. What would her parents say if she left? Her twin sister was already judging her for considering it. Would they be devestated? Candor was suppose to hate liars. Catherine had never lied- but her instincts had told her she should a countless amount of times. Would her parents be glad that she was gone- for she was a liar at heart?

Catherine bit the inside of her cheek, a nervous tendency that she was prone to whenever she was stressed. Candor _wasn't _her home. And that, was the truth. Most Candor would be fine with it- but having everything out in the open just didn't appeal to Catherine.

A pair of foot steps approaching the home snapped her out of her thoughts. She looked up to see her father coming home from work. His hair was gelled back, in a way that made it look greasy, and he wore a pristine black suit, accompanied by a white tie. A small, smile crawled upon his face. Once he was close enough for her to hear him, he stopped walking.

"What are you doing out here?" Mr. Jones asked, curiosity rising up in him.

"Just thinking," Catherine quickly quipped. It was true, but there was more to it. Quickly, she checked to make sure she wasn't doing anything that could lead him into thinking she was lying. She stopped biting her cheek, she looked into his eyes and straightened her back.

"About?" He examined her body language, before looking back at her face.

"The test, and Candor." She crossed her legs in an attempt to halt any nervous shaking. Sure, she had to tell the truth, but that didn't mean she was forced to spill out her opinion on the matter...unless of course, he asked.

"Well," Mr. Jones paused for a moment. "If you do not get Candor, your mother and I will be truly disappointed. We raised you better, we raised you to know that telling the truth was the only way to keep peace. The only way to survive. If you were to leave, your mother would be heart broken, but even if you do leave, I highly doubt Elizabeth will be leaving too." His small smile stretched up into a frin before he began climbing up the porch and retreating into the house.

A pang of sadness struck Catherine. She frowned slightly, and stared down at the dirt sidewalk. Of course they'd be diasspointed about it- she couldn't expect any less. Frustrated, she pulled herself up. And in a very un-candor manor, let out a string of curse words before pouting her way back up the porch. _This really sucked_.

Walking into the house, she was greeted with the warm smell of grilled chicken. If Catherine did leave, the one thing she would miss was her mother's cooking. How that woman was able to manipulate the food to taste so amazing was beyond Catherine. The dark haired teen quickly retreated to her room, changed her dirt-covered white shoes, to her black Mary Janes. Heaven forbid the Candor add any color to their wardrobe. Catherine shook her head, and pushed the dirty shoes under her bed.

Hell, it was a surprise the food wasn't cooked black too.

"Dinner's ready!" Mrs. Jones called out front somewhere in the kitchen.

Catherine put a smile on, hoping to ignore any and all tension that could cause more questions. A trick she picked up at a _very_ young age after an incident having something to do with beating up an Erudite who refused to shut his pie-hole. She closed the door behind her, and quickly manuevered through the hall. She quickly glanced, or well, glared, at the black and white family photos, once adorned with color but now nothing but varying from eggshell white to decaying grey. If she did leave Candor, she would make sure to take as many in-color photographs she could.

As Catherine walked into the dinning room, she was met by the eyes of her family. Don't sweat, blink every four or five seconds, she rambled off the checklist of physical give aways of nervous-ness and took her seat across from Elizabeth, their parents sitting at opposite ends of the table.

"This smells delicious," Elizabeth attempted to make small talk as she looked down at her plate. Adorned on the simple white plate was grilled chicken, peas and mashed potatoes.

"Thank you, dear." Mrs. Jones gave her daughter a sad smile.

Catherine picked up her spoon and took a (what she supposed was) good sized bite of her mashed potatoes. Her smile grew genuine as the flavors danced across her tastebuds.

"It's too bad this is one of the last times you'll get to have mom's cooking," Elizabeth stated out loud from across the table, a sense of bitterness to it all, obviously having caught her enjoyment in the meal. She narrowed her, or well, _their_ cat-like eyes at Catheirne, before turning her attention back to her plate.

"I- excuse me?" Catherine put her spoon down and frowned at her twin sister. "I never said I'm leaving, Beth. I just said... Listen- I'll take the test. I'll do what I believe is best for the situations that I am put into. If my results say I'm Candor, then I will stay. But if it says otherwise..." Catherine let her thoughts spill out, not filtering what she had to say. "If I am told I should be- I don't know, Erudite- then I'll think about it. If my future would be better else where you can't expect me to deny it. I'm not a Stiff."

"You're allowed to do what you want to do," Mrs. Jones butted in from the opposite side of the table. "But if you leave we won't be happy. We will be hurt. What kind of family would say they're happy to see one of their children leave? We'll get over it, though. We will have to."

"Sorry," Catherine mumbled, looking down at her hands. "You're right...now, if you'll excuse me," Catherine pushed her chair back and stood up. "I've lost my appetite. I'm going to go to bed early. Good night."

Before anyone could say anything, She rushed out of the dinning room and back towards her room. Why was Elizabeth being such a bitch? Catherine shook her head. No, Elizabeth wasn't being a bitch. She was being honest. She was being a Candor. Their mother was right, though. Of course they wouldn't be happy to see her leave, even if it meant Catherine would have a better future. She had to understand that- once she had kids, she would be experiencing the same thing. Catherine let out a steady breath of air and pushed her bedroom door open, closing it as lightly as possible behind in.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note**: So, what do you guys think so far? Enjoying it? Don't forget to leave a review! It's the only way I'll know what you guys think about the story so far! Also, I just wanted to through in there that the simulations that Catherine will go through for the aptitude test will be different from the book. They have to change every few years, don't they? How boring would it be to have the same year after year.. Anyway, on with the story!

**Chapter Two**

Two days had come and gone faster than Catherine had originally thought it would. The day she had been stressing about over for days was finally here. Along with her sister, they strolled into the school's cafeteria. Like usual, the Stiffs were sitting at their table quietly, looking down at their hands. The Dauntless were shouting, laughing loudly and animatedly. The Amity were laughing as well- conversating in a peaceful manner. Erudite was reading their books, getting into lively debates about who knows what. Finally, the Candor, claud in their black and white fancy clothes, were openly discussing whatever was on their mind.

A small frown etched onto Catherine's face. She followed her sister and slid into the open spot on their faction's table. She didn't bother to socialize with the other people at their table. She didn't want to hear their comments- no matter how 'honest and open' they were. The dark haired girl turned to her twin, and gave her a small smile.

"Good luck, Beth." Catherine angled her body towards her sister who sat next to her. "You don't need it, but it's the thought that counts, right?"

"No, not really." Elizabeth squared her jaw, and turned her attention to the front of the cafeteria.

Catherine let out a small sigh. What did she do to piss her sister off so badly? Usually when she told the truth, she wasn't so mean about it. Who knows? Maybe she would leave and wouldn't have to put up with Elizabeth's sour attitude anymore. She bit down on the inside of her cheek, and turned her attention towards the front.

A woman with short blonde hair was reading names off the clip board every few minutes. What seemed to be hours, but was possibly only minutes- the woman annoucing who's turn it was to take the test finally got to the J section.

"James, Mathew." The woman called out with a strong voice. It wasn't the blue clothes she wore- but her confidence that for some reason screamed 'Erudite'.

"Jones, Catherine." She finally called out after a few minutes.

Catherine snapped her attention back to reality and pulled herself off the bench. She gave her sister one last look, but was greeted with nothing in return. She let out a small sigh and headed towards the front of the cafeteria, where she was lead through a long hall by a man with blond hair. She finally got to a room with the number 6 above the door.

"This is where you'll be taking the test," The man opened up the door for her.

Catherine mumbled a thanks and walked into the room, jumping slightly when he slammed the door behind her. She turned towards the room, and examined it. Along the farthest wall was nothing but mirrors. In the center of the room was a loan chair, with a red haired woman standing next to it. By the way she wore her hair down in a mess, and the yellow dress she was adorn in, it was obvious that she was Amity.

"Take a seat. My name is Rose and I'll be your test instructor today." Rose held her left arm out, gesturing to the chair.

Catherine obeyed and crossed the room, sitting on the leather chair. She straightened her back out nervously, and folded her hands in her lap. She watched from the corner of her eye as Rose began to pour a clear blue liquid into a small shot glass. She turned her attention back to the front of the room as soon as Rose picked the glass up and turned back towards Catherine.

"Drink this, and you may begin the test." Rose handed the glass to her.

"Thanks," Catherine took it and quickly drank down the bitter substance.

She made a small face of distate, and laid back on the chair. Rose took two wires, and stuck them to Catherine's forehead, as she began to feel her eyes get heavy. After a minute, she closed her eyes and fell into a sleep-like trance.

When Catherine opened her eyes again, she was in a forest. She couldn't believe her eyes. She didn't even think they existed anymore, especially after the war. In front of her was two granite pedistools.

"Pick one," A feminine voice rang out, from no where in particular. "Now."

Catherine tried to place the voice, but she couldn't. Deciding to follow the orders, she turned back from the voice to the pedistools in front of her. On the one to ler left, a piece of paper. Upon further examination, she found that the torn piece of paper was taken out of the Bible. It said something about killing birds and sin. On the stool to her right was a small bamboo pipe with a single dart next to it. Throwing fate to the wind, she grabbed the pipe and the dart. She had seen them before in text books. They were used by Native Americans centuries ago, to hunt.

Not a minute later, the piece of paper burnt away and she was left with the choice she made. About three feet away from her, a nest sat on the lowest branch of a tree. In it was a young Mockingbird. It turned it's attention towards Catherine, and let out a loud screech. Quickly, she pulled her hands up to her ears trying to shield herself from the bird. The screech was incredibly painful- it felt like her ears were bleeding!

Catherine quickly put the dart into the bamboo pipe and pulled the pipe up to her lips. She had one shot to hit this bird and put an end to it's madenning scream. With all her might, Catherine blew as much air into the pipe as possible. The dart whizzed out an pierced the screeching bird. Immediately, the screeching stopped. She let out a sigh relief and dropped the pipe onto the dirt below her.

When she turned around she expected to see the rest of the forest unfolded in front of her. However, a large court room lied out. The room had glossy, wooden floors with a huge audience just a few feet away from her. Everyone watched Catherine anxiously, and nervously. Her mother let out a loud weep from the front row, clutching onto Mr. Jone's as if her life depended on it.

"Well?" A strong male's voice asked from Catherine's right.

"What?" She turned to the man. He had an aging face, and white hair slicked back.

"Did you, or did you not steal the necklace?" The judge narrowed his grey eyes in frustration at the young Candor.

Before Catherine could say anything, she felt a small clank in her pocket. She reached into her left pocket and felt a cool chain in the palm of her hand. It was a necklace. Was this the one the judge asked about? Catherine felt her lip quiver slightly. If she had stolen something she'd probably be sent to live with the factionless! She pulled her thin hand out of her pocket, and began to nervously fiddle her fingers.

"No, of course not! What kind of person do you think I am?" Catherine blurted out, turning back to the crowd. She knew she shouldn't lie- especially being from Candor, but she had to. Her life literally depended on it.

"So be it," The man picked up his wooden gavel and it landed wit a small thud on the table.

There was a flash of white light, so blinding that Catherine pulled her arm up to shield her eyes from its harsh rays. After a moment, her vision started to return, and she lowered her arm. She was back in the testing room. The test was over. That was it? She let out a low, nervous laugh. That wasn't what she expected- that was for sure.

"All done," Rose giggled from the left. She was typing on a monitor, before she turned back to Catherine. "How was it? You're feeling fine, right?"

"Yeah," Catherine nodded her head slowly. "Well- what did I get?"

"Your results were quite common. A lot of Candors end up with the same answers you chose. I guess bravory and honesty can be linked together closely!"

"Bravory- wait, you couldn't possibly mean..." Catherine trailed off, staring at the Amity woman as if she was just a figment of her imagination. "Dauntless?" The word was barley a whisper- fresh to her lips. Out of all the results, she thought she would probably get Candor, maybe Erudite.

"Yes! Now, I hate to rush you but you must leave. I have others to test! Tomorrow you'll be able to choose, and you have the rest of the day to make a decision."

Catherine pulled herself up from the seat and made her way towards the door. Her legs felt like jelly- like one bug bite and she was down for the count. How did Elizabeth know she would get something other than Candor? She always figured she would stay with her family's fraction, even it didn't seem likely. She saw it first hand. As soon as she was able to lie in order to benefit herself without getting in trouble, she did.

She left the room, closing the door behind herself (a little too hard.) Catherine crossed her arms and quickly followed the hall back out of the back rooms and towards the cafeteria. A sickening feeling arose in her stomach when she realized how right she was- and how many answers her family had already answered for her. If she stayed with Candor, she'd be welcome. If she left to be with Dauntless, she would be considered a liar- a traitor in her family's eyes.

But maybe that was what Catherine needed. Maybe she had to leave Candor- in order to become her own person.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note**: Thanks so much for the reviews! I'm extremely happy to see that you guys like the story so far. I'm in need of some fill-in characters. My sister gave me an OC of hers to put into the story- so if any of you guys have an OC they'd like to be a part of my story just message me a bit about your character! (: I'll give you credit in the author's note of course, and I wouldn't do anything to them without your permission. If you're interested just message me and I'll reply as soon as possible.

**Chapter Three**

* * *

Dinner that night was ate in complete silence. The only noise being made was the clanking of forks and spoons on plates, and the ocassional throat clearing or sneeze. Catherine sat at the side of the dinning table that she usually ate at. What she thought was going to be a fancy, going away dinner was anything but instad, sat a small plate of oatmeal in front of her, growing colder and colder by the minute. A distance look was in Elizabeth's eyes, and their mother looked somber. Their father was missing- having another late night at work.

Catherine scooped up a soggy spoon-full of oatmeal. She forced it down, trying to be greatful that she wasn't starving unlike some people. Elizabeth muttered something about going to shower and left Mrs. Jones and Catherine alone. The mother and daughter sat in foreboding silence, picking at their food and taking small sips of their drinks.

"Your sister is just hurt. I guess you can say jealous, in a sense." Mrs. Jones finally cracked after several minutes. She pulled her napkin up to her lips and wiped them off. "You'll have to understand."

"Jealous of what, though?" Catherine furrowed her eye brows in frustration. She sat her spoon down on the table in frustration. "We're exactly the same. We're twins!"

"Just because you look alike doesn't mean you're the same. You and Elizabeth are polar opposites. Catherine- you don't belong here." Mrs. Jones shook her head. "You are made for bigger things. Candor isn't your home. I think you know that."

She looked down at her plate, burning holes into the oatmeal. Her mother even said Candor wasn't her home. But wasn't it in a good sense? Maybe she didn't belong here. Maybe she could actually make something of herself if she left...but still...

"I lied." Catherine blurted out, not sure what to say. She couldn't look at her mother, esepcially after doing the one thing that her home didn't believe in. "During the test. T-The old man asked me if I had the necklace. I told him no, but I did..." She reached down into her pocket to find nothing. The whole test felt so real, though. It was as if she really did lie to an actual human being- and she did go against her faction's number one rule.

"I figured as much. Not that you had the necklace- you never did. But I figured you would lie if put into a tough situation. I'm not asking what your results were, but I know you will leave. I know, your sister and your father know. You're easily read." A small smile played onto her lips.

"I-I don't know what to say," Catherine shrugged her shoulders. "I didn't even decide if I want to leave yet or not. It's almost like you're pushing it on me. I-I'm tired." Catherine abruptly stood up and pushed her seat back. "Good-night." She turned away from the table and marched back to her room.

* * *

That morning, Catherine was awaken by the hustle and bustle of the house. Her sister ran into her room, throwing the door open in the process. Catherine was barley awake and couldn't comprehend what her crazed twin was saying. That was when she realized what day it was. _It was the ceremony day! _Catherine pulled her sheets off of her and jumped out of bed. Her bare feet patted against the cool, white tiled floors as she hurried across the room and pulled her closet open.

The black and white clothes mocked her in a sense. She made a face, and quickly pulled out her neatest outfit. A simple black dress, with a white ribbon in the middle of it. She pulled out a pair of black Mary Janes- one of the seven pairs that her parents bought her so she could go the whole week in them. Heaven forbid she wore anything but fancy clothing. As quickly as possible, Catherine changed into her clothes and left her pajamas discarded on her bed. When she finished changing, she fished a pony tail out of her desk and pulled her long, somewhat drab, hair into a bun.

"There," She murmured. "Done dressing. Ready to go."

Catherine gave her room one last look. At the moment, she was sick and tired of the white tiled floor and the black blankets, and everything else in her room that reminded her of the Candor she was born as. But maybe if she she did leave, she'd eventually miss it. Catherine sighed and shook her head. She wasn't even sure if she was going to leave or not. Maybe she should stop thinking it over and just leave. It was obvious her family wanted her to leave, so she might as well.

"Catherine!" Elizabeth called from somewhere in the house. "C'mon! You're holding us up."

Catherine was snapped out of her reveire. She hurried out of the room and down the hall, leaving her bedroom door ajar. In the front room, her parents and sister waited. Elizabeth wore the same dress as Elizabeth- except hers was white with a black ribbon. She simply offered her sister a small smile, and they all left the house.

Outside, all of Candor was heading towards the choosing ceremony. A few of her fellow Candor students seemed nervous, but the others had an air of confidence to their stride. They knew they would stay with their family. Catherine frowned slightly and hurried down the dirt path with everyone else. At least it wouldn't be a long walk.

It took only ten minutes for all the Candor members to get to the choosing ceremony. They entered through the large double doors, and immediately the faction began to file into the elevator. Catherine squished into the small elevator, happy that she was at least able to get a spot by the elevator doors. As everyone began to board, she stared at the abnegation climbing the long stairs. She frowned, feeling slightly sorry for them. That had to suck- walking all the way up to the ceremony, flight after flight. Just before the elevator doors closed, Catherine got a glimpse at the Dauntless. Clad in black clothing, piercings, and tattoos , the entire fraction bursted through the front doors. They darted up the stairs, pushing through the crowd of spineless Abnegation.

A smile crept onto Catherine's face. The were so lucky- being able to do what they want without being judged or treated differently for it. If she showed up at the Candor headquarters with a neck tattoos they'd give their 'honest opinions' on how horrible she looked with it. The elevator doors slid shut and there was a small bing. Slowly, the elevator began to pull upwards.

When the doors to the elevator open, Catherine quickly ran out of them. She stopped once outside of the ceremonial room and looked around. Of course the Dauntless weren't up yet. She calmed herself down, acting as if she wasn't looking for anyone or anything. She followed her sister and parents towards the Candor section of seats. Catherine slid into an end seat, and straightened her dress off.

She was choosing Dauntless. Catherine wasn't sure how she would do - but she would make it work. She had _had it _with the honest Candors, and their hurtful words and opinions. Candor wasn't the place for her. She didn't feel like she was Dauntless- but maybe that was the beauty of it? Maybe she had to pull it out of herself by participating in their death defying traditions?

Everyone entered the ceremony, filling the whole room. Once the room grew silent, a man with dark hair stepped onto the main stage in front of the bowls used to represent the factions. Catherine blocked him out- she had heard the speech a million times from her teachers and fellow Candors. Instead, she focused her attention on the Dauntless. Could she really be one of them? The test said she could be... Could the test ever be wrong? Of course not. The test was never wrong, right?

Catherine was lost in time. It seemed like she had only blocked the man out for a few minutes, but he was beginning to name off people already. It was a slow and long process, and Catherine didn't care much to watch who picked what faction- not with her mind running wild with what was to happen to her once she joined the Dauntless. Would she be able to do what they did? Was she physically fit enough? She was thin, and had pretty good stanima- but that could only last so long.

"Jones, Catherine." She was snapped out of her thoughts almost as quickly as she slipped into them. She glanced at her parents who nodded at her to go.

Carefully, Catherine pulled herself up. She nervously approached the stage, and stopped at the front of the five podiums. Her eyes quickly shot over to the bowl of fire. She bit down on the inside of her cheek and picked up the blade off of the small table in front of her. She picked it up and brased herself, lightly pressing the knife on the palm of her hand. When her blood began to pool out of the cut, she put the knife down and up her open hand.

"Here goes nothing," Catherine muttered to herself.

She held it over the bowl of flames, and took in a deep breath as she watched a drop of her blood fell into the flames. Upon impact, her blood fizzled up and burned away. There was a bunch of loud shouts and applauses from behind her- the Dauntless, Catherine assumed. She put her arm back down to her side and turned around. She casted one last look in her family's direction. Her father look away, and her mother's lip quivered. Elizabeth stared at Catherine with wide eyes, and simply shook her head at her now Dauntless twin.

She turned to her new faction and smiled at them. She hurried over to their section of the seats, and was greeted by a woman with purple hair. The woman patted her on the back and handed her a rag for Catherine's hand. She quickly took it and wiped off the blood, before taking her seat next to the other Dauntless initates. Catherine smiled at her new family, the mantra repeating over and over in her head.

_ Faction over blood, faction over blood._


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note**: First off I just want to say holy cow. There's a lot of you keeping up with my story! I really appreciate it. You guys are awesome. (: Thanks for the reviews, favorites, and alerts! Sorry for the sort of late update. I've been really busy with school, and had a 380 point project to do! Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter.

**Chapter Four**

Catherine was almost too busy getting acquainted with her fellow Dauntless initiates to see her own sister be called up to make her choice. She turned back towards the stage, and burned holes back into her sister's head. She was going to pick Candor, obviously. She was always so honest, and always doing what was told of her. However, she was taking a little while too long.

Elizabeth was practically shaking in her boots. She was grasping the knife tightly, and gave herself a cut that was slightly too deep and long. Instead of letting her blood fall into the Candor's bowl, she completely turned to her right and let it fall into Abnegation. Catherine gasped out loud in complete and utter shock. Was that why she was so upset when she realized Catherine wasn't staying in Candor? Because she didn't want their parents to be alone? Elizabeth turned to her sister and gave her a small, side smile before heading over to the Stiff crowd.

"Did expect that one, did you?" A girl with dark hair, and almond shape eyes asked from next to Catherine.

"I didn't have the slightest of clues," Catherine shook her head, not being able to explain exactly what she felt in words. "She was so against me leaving Candor, that I assumed she was staying..."

"Well, that sucks. I'm Tori, by the way. This is George," She gestured to a guy sitting next to her who appeared to be no more than a year older than her.

"Catherine," She introduced herself, giving them a small nod.

The initiates fell silent, and turned their attention back to the stage. An Erudite boy with shaggy, ashy blond hair was beginning to make his choice. Catherine watched him intensely, a slight interest began to rise up in her. It seemed like the Erudite- who she was pretty sure was called Eric, but wouldn't put her money on it, made each of his movements with extreme confidence and calculations. He sliced his right had open, and allowed his blood to fall effortlessly into the Dauntless bowl.

From Catherine's right, Tori sucked in a deep breath and muttered something to George along the lines of 'he's Dauntless!'. Eric turned around, revealing a pair of steel-grey orbs. Catherine sucked in a deep breath, and looked away from embarrassing herself. He was rather handsome, she had to admit.

An eruption of applause and shouts of congratulations came from the Dauntless after seeing that Eric would be joining them. Catherine clapped along, hoping to seem as normal and inconspicuous as possible. Eric made his way off the stage, grabbed a bandage for the cut and wrapped his hand. Catherine looked around for what open seats were available, and to her extreme embarrassment the only open one was to the left of her.

Eric climbed up the steps and towards the seat, and Catherine quickly twisted her body around to Tori, to busy herself. Tori was in a heated debate with George whether they'd start right off the bat with the crazy stunts that other Dauntless do. While Catherine pretended to be apart the siblings conversation, Eric collapsed into open seat next to her. She impatiently crossed her legs and began to shake her ankle impatiently. When was the ceremony finally be over?

It took what seemed to be another hour until everyone was tested. Catherine let out a sigh of relief ad pulled herself out of the cramped chair. She began to stretch her back slightly, and just as she did all the Dauntless began to break out in a run. Catherine quickly pulled herself together and chased after them, trying to keep up as fast as possible. Maybe she shouldn't have worn her dress and Mary Janes despite it being a special occasion.

Catherine hate it. It wasn't the running, but that she was at the back of the pack. She couldn't help it though. She wasn't ready to break out in a full strides run on the first day! Despite having to constantly pull at the back of her dress to keep from flashing someone, and having to be careful so she wouldn't trip in her shoes. She found it exhilarating. They ran out of the building, down all the stairs which she nearly fell down on several occasions, and out the front door. Not far out there was a loud horn, belonging to none other than the train.

The train's tracks was suspended into the air by a slab of concrete being held up by several pillars. As Catherine got up to it, she watched as the others began to latch on to the pillars, like Koalas locking on to bamboo. She slowed down when she got to the pillars, and got into line to climb it as well. It was a simple task that Catherine was sure she could handle, but her dress was a problem. As soon as she began to climb, her dress would give the person behind her a good view of her underwear.

A guy with fiery red hair, and a goofy grin plastered on his face got in line behind Catherine, he turned to his friends and gave them a thumbs up and a small laugh. Catherine rolled her eyes. Of course he'd get in line behind her to impress his friends. She shook her head. It was fine. It wasn't like she had anything to hide. She wasn't going to back down now, that was for sure.

It was safe for Catherine to begin to climb. She locked her hands onto the small pieces of metal protruding from the pillars, that could be used as a make-shift ladder. Just as she stepped onto the third metal piece, her dress pooled out around her, giving the pervert below her a good view of her black underwear. Catherine shook her head and pressed her lips into a thin line trying to ignore the idiot below.

She quickly pulled herself up the ladder and heaved her body onto the cement. Just as she got up, the train rounded the corner and began to make its way towards the rest of the Dauntless. Catherine moved out-of-the-way so the ginger behind her could get up. She rolled her eyes at him, and waited patiently for the train. She had seen it before. The train didn't stop for the Dauntless. The Dauntless jumped onto the train with all their might, and off they went. Catherine never pictured herself actually doing it, though.

The train was so close that it began to whip Catherine's dark hair in all directions. Everyone began to run along the train, so she began to as well. SHe pumped her legs as fast as possible, to keep up with the automotive. The older Dauntless jumped on first and pushed a button that made all of the electric doors slide open. After they were open, the rest began to fill in as well.

Catherine let out a shaky breath as she kept up with the train. As soon as she saw the opportunity to get on- she took it. She latched her hand onto the cold handle, and used all of her body strength, which wasn't a lot, to pull herself onto the train. As soon as she got onto the train, someone patted her back approvingly. She laughed lightly, the adrenaline kicking in. What were the going to do now? Whatever it was, she was ready! Eric was in the same compartment as her, along with a handful of others, but there was no Tori or George. Maybe they were in a different one? They had to have made it, right?

Catherine stuck her head out of the train's door and looked back towards where they had first jumped on. There was a few people left, and she frowned slightly.

"What happens to them now?" Catherine asked out loud from no one in particular.

"They become factionless," Eric replied from somewhere behind her.

"Shit, that's gotta suck..." She trailed off, honestly feeling bad for them.

She turned back away from the door, and slouched against the wall opposite of it. Everyone was talking with excitement, chatting away about how fun it would be to be Dauntless, and how they wouldn't have to deal with their old faction's crap anymore. Catherine had to admit, she wouldn't miss having to tell the truth every single time she was asked something. Being able to lie gave her a sense of freedom that she never had before. She'd miss home occasionally, but no she was her own woman. She could do what she wanted, and no one could stop her- within reason, of course.

Everyone began to pile around the door, preparing themselves for what was to come. Catherine stood on her tip-toes behind the crowd, trying to figure out what it was. They were coming up to a building rooftop. From further up the train, someone jumped out of their compartment and rolled onto the gravel roof top. Everyone began to back away from the train door, and she followed the rest of the crowd's moves. Two older Dauntless members, a female with electric blue hair and a guy with hair as white as clouds ran from the back of the train, and jumped with all their might just as they got to the door. They practically flew onto the building, and landed on their shins. Practice made perfect, especially when landing on roofs after jumping off a freight train.

Catherine gathered her nerves. The adrenaline she had just moments ago ran dry. She cracked her knuckles, and focused on everyone's moves. She had to replicate them perfect. After a few moments, the opportunity for her to jump came. Eric had already jumped, and there was only a few others left. Catherine pressed herself against the farthest wall, and began to run towards the door, she pounced with all her strength. Her hair, dark as the night sky, whipped behind her as she glided through the air. What was momentarily graceful, turned into a huge mess.

She landed on the roof, and rolled onto her side. She felt a quick pain in her knee and ankle, but they quickly was replaced with numbness. Catherine rolled over and groaned slightly, slowly opening her eyes to the blinding sun. Someone stepped over her, blocking the sun with their head. Catherine's eye sight when back to normal, and she let out a sigh of relief when she saw it was none other than Tori.

"Hey," Catherine let out a nervous laugh.

"Hey, you're bleeding." Tori stuck her hand out to help her up.

Thankful to have a friend, Catherine took her hand and pulled herself up. There was a pain in her ankle, and she wobbled slightly because of it. She lifted her right foot off, keeping pressure from it. She must have sprained it in the jump. She looked down at her knees, and sure enough her left knee was bleeding. She had skidded on the gravel, causing a large bloody mark to appear on her knee. A few pieces of gravel was still stuck in the blood, but she did her best to ignore it.

"At least I'm still in one piece," Catherine shrugged.

"That's more than that red-head can say." Tori shook her head.

"Which red-head? What happened?" She frowned, slightly confused.

"That sleaze who was looking up your dress earlier," Tori gestured towards the opening between the building and the train tracks. "He fell. He didn't make the jump. Now he's a pancake at the bottom."

Catherine was upset that he looked up her dress, but she would never wish for anything like that to happen. She shuddered slightly, and turned away from the edge of the roof. That was crazy. For some reason, she felt like no one would actually get hurt. Maybe there was a net at the bottom- maybe the Dauntless had a patrol down there to help in case anyone fell. Apparently not.

She pushed the poor guy to the back of her mind and rejoined the group. They were all standing in front of the girl with electric blue hair, who introduced herself as Lexi.

"Congrats- you've almost made it. You're three-fourths of the way to becoming a Dauntless. All you have to do now is jump." Lexi moved and gestured to behind her. There was a large, dark hold in the ceiling of the roof. Looking down it, nothing could be seen. "You jump down it, and you're officially Dauntless. Now, who's first?"

"Me, " Eric volunteered without a second beat. He stepped forward in the crowd, and looked down at the hole.

"Good luck, try not to die." Lexi snorted sarcastically.

Eric rolled his eyes in response, and walked over to the edge of the hole. He simple looked down in it, and stepped forward. This guy had balls- Catherine had to admit. He didn't scream, or even protest. He just walked right on into the hole. By the lack of scream or the sound of bones breaking echoing through the building, she figured it had to be fine. Catherine rose her hand meekly from the back of the crowd.

"Yeah?" Lexi called out towards the back of the crowd. People began to move out of their way, casting their eyes towards Catherine.

"I'll go next if I can burn these shoes after." Catherine simply shrugged.

"I'm not going to stop you."

Catherine nodded her head. Holding onto Tori's shoulder with her left hand, she slipped the Mary Janes off. She released Tori's shoulder and picked the damn shoes up. They had caused her so many problems up to this point. She never wanted to see the God-damned Mary Janes again. She marched towards the hole as best she could with her sprained ankle. When she got up to the hold, Catherine tossed her shoes into the hole. She expected to hear her shoes at least hit the ground, but nothing. There was a net! If not a net, something was there to catch them. She would have heard the shoes clatter on the ground, no matter how far the drop.

With this piece of information, Catherine decided to have some fun. A sly smile plastered onto her face. She turned towards the crowd, her back to the hole. She did a small curtsy, and waved goodbye.

"Au revoir," Catherine stepped back, falling backwards into the hole.

She swallowed down her scream, trying to play it off cool like Eric had. After what seemed to be two minutes of falling, Catherine landed on something- a net! She was right! She bounced up before landing back on the net. Just as she landed for the second time and her momentum calmed down, someone pulled a side of the net dow. Catherine rolled towards the other end, and got off of the net.

"Missing something?" Eric asked, from a few feet away. He was holding up her shoes.

"More like rejoicing that I no long have to wear them," Catherine replied sarcastically.

Eric cocked his left eyebrow up and tossed the shoes in her direction. She caught them, and slipped them back on. She had to wear them just until she got new ones, which shouldn't be long.

"You don't understand because you're a guy. Maybe because you're Erudite. Either way, these shoes are horrible. I was barely able to keep up with you guys because of them. Plus when I landed I sprained my ankle, and cut up my knee. Lexi said I could burn them, and believe me I'm going to when I get the chance." Catherine shook her head disapprovingly.

"Maybe you shouldn't have dressed up like that?" Eric remarked, quickly glancing down at her dress.

"I had to wear this. I didn't have much of a choice back at home. Candor prefers if you dress in drab, dress up clothing. Besides, my parents didn't know I was leaving. I didn't want them to know until I actually made my choice."

"And why's that?" Eric asked.

Their conversation was interrupted. Someone else had jumped, another female judging by the scream. Just as the person landed on the net they let off an 'oof', and rolled over. Once the buzz calmed down, the person got off the net and began to laugh crazily. Catherine squinted her eyes, and once she realized it was Tori, she grinned.

"Tori!" Catherine hurried over to her newly found friend. "Awesome. I wasn't sure when you were going to jump."

Tori caught her breath, "You jumped as if it was nothing. How did you know the net was done there?"

"Well, first off I didn't hear any wailing of pain coming from Eric. I also didn't hear his bones crunching all at once. Finally, when I tossed my shoes I didn't hear them hit the ground or anything. You would have heard something, right? So I figured, 'hey- might as well jump while looking cool as hell!' And now here I am." Catherine did her best to explain.

An older Dauntless with light blonde hair approached them. She smiled slightly, and glanced down at the clip board. "Name and original faction, please."

"Tori, Erudite." Tori replied.

Catherine paused for a minute. Now was a chance to completely reform herself. She was already doing so by joining Dauntless, so why not take it one step further? "Call me Lara. Candor."

Tori gave her a side glance, but didn't question it. The woman nodded her head approvingly, moving onto the newest person to jump down. Lara turned to Tori, and gave her a small smile. It was finally official. There was no other Catherine, just a small resemblance in her left in Lara. She would no longer be scared. She would no longer question her actions and she will never give up. Lara was now Dauntless.


End file.
